Video: Mazda2 drives around vertical 'wall of death'

A Mazda2 supermini has been driven around a vertical wall of death - the oldest operating one in existence, in fact - in one of the most awesome official publicity stunt videos ever made.

Called the Demon Drone, the wall was built in 1927 in the US and shipped to the UK, during an era when the sight of a motorcycle circling a vertical surface was about the most exciting thing in the whole world. That was before planking and Google+, obviously.

It's still quite awesome, though - especially seeing a car do it. The wall's diameter is just 31-foot, and as you can see, it takes quite some skill to get spinning around it...

...and a modified car. The Mazda2 in the vid is a 1.5-litre Sport model fettled by Jota Sport. It's had a race seat put in to make sure the driver - 'Dynomyte' Dave Seymour - doesn't fall out, and the front fogs removed so that the bumper will flex more. The suspension's bump stops have been uprated to handle the load placed on them.

It's a hefty load too: when riding a motorcycle around the ring, 4g of force is placed upon the driver, "[pooling] blood in their legs and [giving] them tunnel vision," according to Mazda.

Just to be clear, the Demon Drone has recently undergone a three-year restoration - by Dynomyte Dave and his posse, as it happens.

Anyway, here's the video. Buy a Mazda2. Buy a Mazda2. Buy a Mazda2.*

*Just a joke. Mazda hasn't paid us or anything like that. We really do like the video.